Answer to Question
The Combination of the Two Hadiths “Will be there be any Evil After the Good” and “Then there will be a Khilafah on the Method of Prophethood”
To: Mohammed Shtat Abu Sabah
(Translated)

Question:

Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatu Allahi wa Barakatuh,

I hope that you receive my message and you are in abundance of health and wellness
And I want you to explain to me the following hadiths because these hadiths apparently contradictory and are used by groups of people to respond to each other without understanding what is meant by them.

The Hadith of the first group:

It was narrated on the authority of Al-Nu'man, ibn Al-Bashir (r.a) who said: “We were sitting in the mosque of the Messenger of Allah (saw) and Bashir was a man who did not speak much, so Abu Tha'labah Al Khushani came and said: “Oh, Bashir bin Sa’ad, have you memorized the words of the Messenger of Allah (saw) regarding the rulers?” Hudhaifah replied, “I have memorized his words”. So, Abu Tha’labah sat down and Hudhaifa said:

«تَكُونُ النُّبُوَّةُ فِيكُمْ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا ثُمَّ تَكُونُ خِلَافَةٌ عَلَى مِنْهَاجِ النُّبُوَّةِ فَتَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا ثُمَّ تَكُونُ مُلْكاً عَاضّاً فَيَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَكُونَ ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا ثُمَّ تَكُونُ مُلْكاً جَبْرِيَّةً فَتَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا ثُمَّ تَكُونُ خِلَافَةً عَلَى مِنْهَاجِ النُّبُوَّةِ» ثُمَّ سَكَتَ...

“Prophethood will last with you as long as Allah wants it to last. Then there will be Khilafah according to the method of Prophethood, and it will last for as long as Allah wishes, then He will lift it if He wishes. Then there will be hereditary rule (ملكًا عاضًا), and it will last for as long as Allah wishes, then He will lift it if He wishes. Then there will be an oppressive rule (ملكًا جبرية), and it will last for as long as Allah wishes, then He will lift it if He wishes. Then there will be a Khilafah on the method of Prophethood.” Then he (saw) fell silent”.

And the Hadith of the second group:

Hudhaifah bin Al-Yaman narrates:

«كَانَ النَّاسُ يَسْأَلُونَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنْ الْخَيْرِ وَأَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ الشَّرِّ وَعَرَفْتُ أَنَّ الْخَيْرَ لَنْ يَسْبِقَنِي قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَبَعْدَ هَذَا الْخَيْرِ شَرٌّ قَالَ يَا حُذَيْفَةُ تَعَلَّمْ كِتَابَ اللَّهِ وَاتَّبِعْ مَا فِيهِ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَبَعْدَ هَذَا الشَّرِّ خَيْرٌ قَالَ هُدْنَةٌ عَلَى دَخَنٍ وَجَمَاعَةٌ عَلَى أَقْذَاءٍ قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ الْهُدْنَةُ عَلَى دَخَنٍ مَا هِيَ قَالَ لَا تَرْجِعُ قُلُوبُ أَقْوَامٍ عَلَى الَّذِي كَانَتْ عَلَيْهِ قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ أَبَعْدَ هَذَا الْخَيْرِ شَرٌّ قَالَ فِتْنَةٌ عَمْيَاءُ صَمَّاءُ عَلَيْهَا دُعَاةٌ عَلَى أَبْوَابِ النَّارِ وَأَنْتَ أَنْ تَمُوتَ يَا حُذَيْفَةُ وَأَنْتَ عَاضٌّ عَلَى جِذْلٍ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنْ أَنْ تَتَّبِعَ أَحَداً مِنْهُمْ»

“People would ask the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about the good, but I used to ask him about the bad, in case I am overtaken by it. I asked: “O Messenger of Allah, will be there be any evil after the good”? He replied: “Learn the Book of Allah, Hudhaifah, and adhere to its contents”. He said it three times. I asked: O Messenger of Allah, will there be good after this evil? He replied: There shall be a truce clouded by smoke and a community with specks in its eye.

I asked: O Messenger of Allah, what is the truce clouded by smoke? He replied: “The hearts of the people will not return to their former condition”. I asked: “O Messenger of Allah, will there be evil after this good?” He replied: “A blinding and deafening fitnah (trial). With it, people standing and inviting at the gates of Hell. For you to die, O Hudhaifa, biting on to a root of a tree would be better than following any one of them.”

The first group explained that the good of the Ummah is coming, Allah willing, and that a Khilafah on the method of Prophethood is coming, and it will rule by the law of Allah, which is the good itself.

While the second group argues based on its hadith that the good of the Ummah its time has passed, and we are only in the period of Fitnah that the Messenger reported, and that it is necessary for a Muslim Keep away from people to escape with his religion...

Please clarify, and please accept my respect and appreciation

Answer:

Wa Alaikum Assalam wa Rahmatu Allahi wa Barakatuh,

The first hadith was extracted by Ahmed and Al-Tayalisi, and the second one mentioned in the question was extracted by Ahmed, but Bukhari extracted it with the following words: ... Abu Idrees al-Khulani told me that he heard Hudhaifah bin Al-Yaman say:

«كاَنَ النَّاسُ يَسْأَلُونَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ عَنْ الْخَيْرِ وَكُنْتُ أَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ الشَّرِّ مَخَافَةَ أَنْ يُدْرِكَنِي، فَقُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، إِنَّا كُنَّا فِي جَاهِلِيَّةٍ وَشَرٍّ فَجَاءَنَا اللَّهُ بِهَذَا الْخَيْرِ، فَهَلْ بَعْدَ هَذَا الْخَيْرِ مِنْ شَرٍّ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ. قُلْتُ: وَهَلْ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ الشَّرِّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ، وَفِيهِ دَخَنٌ. قُلْتُ: وَمَا دَخَنُهُ؟ قَالَ: قَوْمٌ يَهْدُونَ بِغَيْرِ هَدْيِي تَعْرِفُ مِنْهُمْ وَتُنْكِرُ. قُلْتُ: فَهَلْ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ الْخَيْرِ مِنْ شَرٍّ؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ، دُعَاةٌ إِلَى أَبْوَابِ جَهَنَّمَ مَنْ أَجَابَهُمْ إِلَيْهَا قَذَفُوهُ فِيهَا. قُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، صِفْهُمْ لَنَا. فَقَالَ: هُمْ مِنْ جِلْدَتِنَا وَيَتَكَلَّمُونَ بِأَلْسِنَتِنَا. قُلْتُ: فَمَا تَأْمُرُنِي إِنْ أَدْرَكَنِي ذَلِكَ؟ قَالَ: تَلْزَمُ جَمَاعَةَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَإِمَامَهُمْ. قُلْتُ: فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ جَمَاعَةٌ وَلَا إِمَامٌ؟ قَالَ: فَاعْتَزِلْ تِلْكَ الْفِرَقَ كُلَّهَا وَلَوْ أَنْ تَعَضَّ بِأَصْلِ شَجَرَةٍ حَتَّى يُدْرِكَكَ الْمَوْتُ وَأَنْتَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ»

“The people used to ask Allah's Apostle about good, but I used to ask him about evil for fear that it might overtake me. Once I said, "O Allah's Apostle! We were in ignorance and in evil and Allah has bestowed upon us the present good; will there be any evil after this good?" He said, "Yes." I asked, "Will there be good after that evil?" He said, "Yes, but it would be tinted good." I asked: What shall taint it? He said: ‘A people who will guide with other than my guidance. You shall approve of them and disapprove.’ I said: Will there be any evil after this good? He replied: ‘Yes! Callers to the gates of Hellfire, whoever responds to their call they will throw them into the fire.’ I inquired: O Allah’s Messenger, describe them for us. He said: ‘They will be of your skin and speak your language.’ I said: What do you order me if I should reach this? He said: ‘Cling to the united body (jama‘ah) of the Muslims and their leader.’ What if there is no united body or leader, I asked? He said: ‘Then remove yourself from all these sects, even if you have to cling to the trunk of a tree until death comes to you and you are in that state.”

Honorable brother, it seems that you have confusion in this matter, so you thought that the end of the first hadith:

(ثم تكونُ خلافةً على مِنهاجِ نُبُوَّةٍ) “Then there will be a Khilafah on the method of Prophethood.” is in agreement with the end of the second hadith: (قال: فِتْنةٌ عَمْياءُ صَمَّاءُ، عليها دُعاةٌ على أبوابِ النارِ) “He said: A blinding and deafening fitnah (trial), on it, people standing and inviting at the gates of Hell”, and therefore you wondered how the state of the ummah would be: in the first hadith, there is a Khilafah on the method of Prophethood, and in the second hadith

(فِتْنةٌ عَمْياءُ صَمَّاءُ، عليها دُعاةٌ على أبوابِ النارِ)

“A blinding and deafening fitnah (trial), on it, people standing and inviting at the gates of Hell”?!

This is not the case, brother, because the end of the first hadith is not the end of the second hadith. Hudhaifah did not ask what is after the end of the second hadith, i.e. (Callers to the gates of Hellfire), rather, he was interested in what he would do if he reaches this situation, as it was heavy on him that Muslims would reach this situation (Callers to the gates of Hellfire), so the important thing for him became to ask the Messenger (saw) what to do if this situation befalls him, and he did not ask him what will happen after it...

As for this situation in the second hadith, it is the same situation in the first hadith, oppressive rule (al-Mulk al-Jabri), that is, the situation that occurs after the demise of the Khilafah (Caliphate) and then followed by the oppressive rule (ملكًا جبرية), which is against the will of the people and is compulsory against them and without the consent of the Muslims and without ruling by Islam, that is, the state in which Muslims have been since the Khilafah was abolished in 1924 CE until today ... and it is clear in it the presence of callers at the gates of Hellfire, and as it came in Bukhari:

(دُعَاةٌ إِلَى أَبْوَابِ جَهَنَّمَ مَنْ أَجَابَهُمْ إِلَيْهَا قَذَفُوهُ فِيهَا...) “Callers to the gates of Hellfire. Whoever responds to their call they will throw them into the fire.”

As for what indicates that this situation in the first hadith (al-Mulk al-Jabri) is the same situation in the second hadith (Callers to the gates of Hellfire), it is the reflection on the situation preceding the oppressive rule in the first hadith, and the situation preceding the deafening and blinding fitnah in the second hadith ...

The first hadith mentioned before al-Mulk al-Jabri (oppressive rule), al-Mulk al-Adud (hereditary rule), meaning the succession in the house of the Caliph, which lasted about 1,300 years during the Umayyad, Abbasid and Ottoman periods, and as we said in our books during which misapplication occurred, especially in the pledge of allegiance (Bayah), as the Bayah used to be given to one from the household of the previous caliph and the Muslims got used to that. So, instead of pledging allegiance to those who are acceptable to Muslims among the general population, the pledge became confined to the family of the caliph, meaning that this stage was a Khilafah (Caliphate), but in it (the caliph was clinging stubbornly to it) so that the Khilafah does not leave his family ... and this stage is the one that is Mentioned by the second hadith (هُدْنةٌ على دَخَنٍ) “a truce clouded by smoke”, or as in the narration of Al-Bukhari

(خير فيه دخن قلت وما دخنه قال قوم يهدون بغير هديي تعرف منهم وتنكر)

"tinted good, I asked: What shall taint it? He said: ‘A people who will guide with other than my guidance. You shall approve of them and disapprove.”

After this stage, the Messenger (saw) tells us in the first hadith that the Khilafah on the method of Prophethood will be after the oppressive rule... As for the second hadith, Hudhaifa, may Allah be pleased with him, did not ask what is after the blinding, deafening Fitnah, and callers at the gates of Hellfire, so he did not ask what is after this evil, but rather the matter was heavy on him and was preoccupied with asking what to do if this situation befalls him...

In summary, the combination of the two hadiths is as follows:

1- The first hadith mentioned the oppressive rule, but did not detail its evils, and the Messenger (saw) told us that the Khilafah on the method of Prophethood will return after this oppressive rule...

With regard to the second hadith, Hudhaifah did not ask what would happen after that deafening, blinding fitnah, meaning he did not ask what would happen after this stage, which is the same stage of the oppressive rule mentioned in the first hadith, but rather he asked what he would do if he reached this situation...

Thus, the end of the two hadiths is not the same, but rather different: the first ended with the Khilafah on the method of Prophethood after the oppressive rule, and the second stopped at the stage of callers at the gates of Hellfire, that is, the oppressive rule and Hudhaifah did not ask what is after that.

2- It remained the point which was mentioned at the end of the question about the second Hadith:

(وَأَنْتَ أَنْ تَمُوتَ يَا حُذَيْفَةُ وَأَنْتَ عَاضٌّ عَلَى جِذْلٍ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنْ أَنْ تَتَّبِعَ أَحَداً مِنْهُمْ)

“For you to die, O Hudaifah, biting on to a root of a tree would be better than following any one of them” and in the hadith of Bukhari:

(قُلْتُ فَمَا تَأْمُرُنِي إِنْ أَدْرَكَنِي ذَلِكَ قَالَ تَلْزَمُ جَمَاعَةَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَإِمَامَهُمْ قُلْتُ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ جَمَاعَةٌ وَلَا إِمَامٌ قَالَ فَاعْتَزِلْ تِلْكَ الْفِرَقَ كُلَّهَا وَلَوْ أَنْ تَعَضَّ بِأَصْلِ شَجَرَةٍ حَتَّى يُدْرِكَكَ الْمَوْتُ وَأَنْتَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ)

“What do you order me to do if such a thing should take place in my life?" He said, "Adhere to the group of Muslims and their Chief." I asked, "If there is neither a group (of Muslims) nor a chief (what shall I do)?" He said, "Keep away from all those different sects, even if you had to bite (i.e. eat) the root of a tree, till you meet Allah while you are still in that state.”.

This is, of course, for those who did not discover the truth to call for it, and saw all these callers at the gates of Hellfire, then he must remove himself from them all ... But if he finds the truth and sees people calling for the truth, then he should proceed with them and not remain in isolation, but he should only remove himself from all those who call to Hellfire.

Therefore, it is possible to combine the two hadiths by understanding them as mentioned, and Allah is Most Wise and He Knows Best.

Your brother,
Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah

14th Rajab al-Khair 1442 AH
26/02/2021 CE

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